These days, Li Xia saw the decadence and strife of the Song Dynasty, but also felt the prosperity of Lin'an.
The small palace city is crowded in the mountainous area in the southernmost part of Hangzhou, occupying neither the beautiful scenery of the West Lake nor the tide of the Qiantang River.
There are more than 20 tile markets in the city. The streets are lit up all night long, and stalls can be set up along the streets with various categories.
As the saying goes, "Everything that is not available in the world is gathered here", the market culture is flourishing.
Common people dare to talk about officials even when they are chatting, and high-ranking officials and dignitaries can be stuck on the same road as foot soldiers and traffickers.
Thanks to this prosperity, poor people are less likely to starve to death as long as they work hard.
There may be bullying, there may be exploitation and oppression, but compared to the north, its cruelty is hidden in the dark, and it is never blatant. The death of a person on the street can alert the government.
People do not have to worry that if they meet a Mongolian on the road, they will be shot and killed without scruples.
Because all the people in this city are the people of the Song Dynasty, not the untouchables.
This time, Li Xia briefly thought about going north. He was confident that he could make a breakthrough.
But it suddenly occurred to him that even if he became a prince, he would often encounter Mongolians like Chi Na, who could plunder and kill the people under his rule at will.
No order can stop it, not even a corrupt order.
What to do then?
Of course, if you endure it, it will pass. In fact, one China can't kill many people, and the Northland has a looser control over military generals.
But he didn't want to endure it.
There is strife and decay here, but compared to battlefields and places under alien rule, this is still the most stable place in the world.
Even if it was better than the bad times, at least he and his friends who were old, weak, sick and disabled did not lose their lives in Lin'an.
They walked around Hangcheng Street and bought many items, feeling like they were taking a leisurely stroll.
In the evening, we went to Fengle Building for dinner. Li Xia was very generous and asked for a private room and ordered the best stir-fry dishes.
This time Gao Mingyue had to sit at the same table with everyone. Knowing her temperament, Li Xia and Gao Changshou immediately put some of each dish in front of her and Han Qiaoer, so that they didn't have to get up to pick it up.
.
In short, this group of people are adapting to getting along with each other and tolerate their own strange habits. For example, Li Xia lives a fastidious life, Liu Jinsuo talks noisily...
Just as I was enjoying my meal, there was a knock on the door, and someone pushed the door open and came in, but it was Gui Hepu.
Gui Hepu only glanced over and saw that Li Xia had stood up with a baggage in his hand.
"Let's go."
"Yes, Alang is right next door."
As I walked through the corridor, I heard shouts coming from a private room. It was someone fighting crickets.
What Gui Hepu pushed open was the door of another private room, where Jia Sidao was alone by the window looking at the West Lake.
"Feiyu is here, let's talk?"
"Mr. Jia played Cuju with the officials today. Will he win or lose?"
"Prince Rong lost."
Neither of them mentioned this incident again. In short, Jia Sidao failed to keep Li Xia and allowed Li Xia to earn his own way out.
Each one is subtle and there is nothing much to say.
Jia Sidao smiled, signaled Gui Hepu to take the baggage from Li Xia's hand, and said, "Do you have all the information?"
"yes."
"Han Qiao'er memorized this, and you brag to me about your good memory."
"It doesn't matter, you can't touch me now."
"Don't be too arrogant. You are just a small county captain with no foundation. I can easily kill you."
"Um."
Li Xia didn't care, he was not proud because of his official position as county captain.
Jia Sidao sighed: "You can also see that the Privy Council does not pay attention to your information because it is useless."
"useless?"
"What if we know about the matters in the North, taxes, population, and the Mongolian Khanate faction? We can't do anything to recover the three capitals, so how can we control it so far."
Li Xia said: "What about sending an envoy north to contact Yang Guo?"
Jia Sidao shook his head and said, "The time has not come yet."
"Then I'll go find Zhao Kui."
"What's the use of being defeated in the Three Capitals?" Jia Sidao patted Li Xia on the back and said, "What's the hurry? When the war in the southwest comes to an end, I promise you that at least there will be a victory."
"You want to use me as a chess piece again?"
Jia Sidao laughed loudly and said: "You are always like this. A villain's heart is like a gentleman's. What else can you say after I have promised you."
After he laughed, his expression became solemn, and he added: "Yan Ming Ruo can help you for a while, but when it comes to political opinions, everyone in the government is the same as you. I am the only one who is the same as you. You must know who to rely on in the future."
Li Xia knew in her heart that what he said was true, but in fact, just to control herself, she didn't bother to respond to him, so she said "hmm" again.
Jia Sidao handed over a letter and said: "I will give you another letter of introduction. If you have anything, you can go to Lu Wende."
As he said that, he pointed to a book on the table and said, "Please accept the gift I gave you."
"Thanks."
"Give me some air if you need anything."
"good."
"You keep your promise, I believe in you." Jia Sidao accepted this, smiled casually, turned around and left.
Li Xia picked up the book on the table and flipped through it.
This is what Jia Sidao wrote after he became an official...
After just reading a few sentences, Li Xia already had a different understanding of the official system of the Song Dynasty.
This is indeed what he needs most right now.
From this point of view, Jia Sidao's way of dealing with people and his methods of winning people's hearts are more than equal to those of Gao Dingdao.
Li Xia put the book in his arms, walked through the corridor, and saw Jia Sidao and his servants walking into the cricket-fighting wing. Several distinguished people in the wing gathered around the table...
"Jia Xiang is back."
"Hey, I told you, just come out to play and call the font size..."
Among the people who were fighting crickets, Liu Mengyan, the number one scholar in Jiachen Branch and editor of Secret Pavilion, took out some money and put it on the table.
When he heard the door open, he looked up and saw Li Xia walking down the corridor.
Liu Mengyan smiled bitterly and lowered his head again, thinking of Zhang Hongdao's letter.
Zhang Wulang actually asked him to kill Li Xia. It was simply incomprehensible. He just handed over the news. How could he kill someone? Jia Xiang would see it.
After several attempts to add fuel to the flames, Li Xia refuses to die and is about to go to the southwest to take office. What else can be done?
As soon as I thought about it, I heard the whole room shouting.
"Bite it! Bite it..."
After returning from dinner at Fengle Tower, Gao Mingyue noticed that Li Xia hadn't done the usual exercises all night.
She hid in the house, leaning against the crack in the door to look, watching him pacing in the courtyard, deep in thought.
There were noisy sounds in the lobby from time to time. They were packing up their belongings and preparing to leave Lin'an.
Gao Mingyue then went to pack her luggage, feeling a little confused.
"Everyone, go to bed early and set off as soon as daybreak."
With these words, the small house in Dengwick Lane became quiet...
Li Xia returned to the house, took off her clothes, and changed the cloth bandage used to bandage the wound.
Suddenly, he turned his head and became alert.
"who?!"
Gao Changshou in the room quickly woke up and asked: "Is it the killer?"
Li Xia nodded, picked up the long sword, opened the door and went out.
On the eve of the Mid-Autumn Festival, the moon was bright and the whole courtyard was filled with light, but there was not a single soul in the courtyard.
"who is it?"
"No one in the Song Dynasty dares to kill me now. It can only be someone from the Sun family or someone who has sneaked into Mongolia."
"Run very fast."
"You have to be more careful on the road..."
The sound of conversation entered Gao Mingyue and Han Qiaoer's room.
Gao Mingyue was standing against the door, gently beating her heart, feeling shocked.
There is no killer, I just want to see if he is injured...